Power is nothing more than the ability to get others to do what you want. For doing that you require tools of coercion or payment, or "hard power", and tools of attraction, or "soft power". Soft power is when a state, an organization or even an individual exercises power with means other than violence and force, being able to convince or persuade others to follow your example, to want what you want, rather than coercing them. Persuasion, diplomacy, foreign aid, cultural influence (like movies and music) etc are some resources of soft power. "Hard power" is about power politics, force, and violence, it refers to the military force of a country and is commonly associated in international relations with realism. Hard power perhaps is the oldest form of power. At present the only Superpower left standing, the US frequently uses both hard and soft power to protect its interests and maintain its influence around the world.
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